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The Late Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) Viko vijin Local Fauna from La Mixteca
Alta, northwestern Oaxaca, southern Mexico

Article  in  Revista Brasileira de Paleontologia · April 2011

DOI: 10.4072/rbp.2011.1.02

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Rev. bras. paleontol. 14(1):15-28, Janeiro/Abril 2011
© 2011 by the Sociedade Brasileira de Paleontologia
doi:10.4072/rbp.2011.1.02

THE LATE PLEISTOCENE (RANCHOLABREAN) VIKO VIJIN LOCAL FAUNA

FROM LA MIXTECA ALTA, NORTHWESTERN OAXACA, SOUTHERN MEXICO

EDUARDO JIMÉNEZ-HIDALGO, ROSALÍA GUERRERO-ARENAS

Laboratorio de Paleobiología, Instituto de Recursos, Campus Puerto Escondido, Universidad del Mar, Carretera Puerto
Escondido, Oaxaca, CP 71980, Mexico. eduardojihi@gmail.com, rosaliaga@zicatela.umar.mx

BRUCE J. MACFADDEN
Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-7800, USA. bmacfadd@flmnh.ufl.edu

LUCÍA CABRERA-PÉREZ
Licenciatura en Biología, Campus Puerto Escondido, Universidad del Mar, Carretera Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, CP 71980,
Mexico. cabreraluc@hotmail.com

S
ABSTRACT – Paleontological work carried out in the Late Pleistocene floodplain and bar fluvial deposits of northwestern
Oaxaca, southern Mexico, resulted in collecting cranial and poscranial material of mammals identified as Glyptotherium,
Hemiauchenia, Camelops, Odocoileus, two Equus species, Cuvieronius, Mammuthus and Bison. The presence of Bison in all the
localities indicates a Rancholabrean North American Land Mammal age for the faunal assemblage. Also, many mollusk specimens

A
were collected and belong to five families of terrestrial gastropods, three families of freshwater gastropods, and one family of
freshwater bivalves. Additionally, several fragments of Rodentia indet., sigmodontine rodents, and scincomorph lizards were also
recovered through the screen-washing of sediments. This faunal association was designed herein as the Viko vijin (cold epoch or

V
period in Mixteca language) Local Fauna (L. F.) and shares nine mammalian taxa with the Rancholabrean local faunas of Terapa
(Sonora, NW Mexico), Chapala (Jalisco), El Cedazo (Aguascalientes) and Tequixquiac (Mexico), central Mexico. Likewise, five of
the eight mollusk families identified are also present in the Late Pleistocene Rancho La Amapola, San Luis Potosi, Central Mexico.

O
The presence of the llama Hemiauchenia in Oaxaca represents the southern-most record of this genus during the Late Pleistocene
in North America, while Late Pleistocene scincomorph lizards are recorded for first time in Oaxaca. Similarly, the records of the
mollusk families Bulimulidae, Polygyridae and Urocoptidae in the Mixteca Alta Oaxaqueña are the first for Mexico and allow
extend their geographic ranges from southern USA to southern Mexico during the Late Pleistocene.

PR
Key words: Pleistocene, Rancholabrean, Mammalia, Mollusca, Oaxaca, Mixteca.

RESUMO – O estudo dos depósitos fluviais de planície de inundação e de barras fluviais do Pleistoceno tardio do noroeste de
Oaxaca permitiu recuperar diversos exemplares de mamíferos identificados como Glyptotherium, Hemiauchenia, Camelops,
Odocoileus, duas espécies de Equus, Cuvieronius, Mammuthus e Bison. A presença de Bison em todas as localidades indica uma
idade norte-americana de mamíferos do Rancholabreano para a associação faunística. Também foram recuperados diversos exem-
plares atribuídos a cinco famílias de gastrópodes terrestres e três famílias de gastrópodes dulceaquícolas, assim como a uma família
de bivalves dulceaquícolas. Adicionalmente, mediante o peneiramento dos sedimentos foram recuperados alguns elementos de
Rodentia indet., roedores da subfamília Sigmodontinae e de lacertilios scincomorfos. Designou-se Fauna Local Viko vijin (época ou
período de frio na língua Mixteca) a esta associação faunística, que compartilha nove táxons de mamíferos com as faunas
rancholabreanas de Terapa (Sonora, NE México), Chapala (Jalisco), El Cedazo (Aguascalientes) e Tequixquiac (México), México
central. Também, são compartilhadas cinco famílias de invertebrados com Rancho La Brisca, Pleistoceno tardio de San Luis Potosí
(México central). O registro da lhama Hemiauchenia em Oaxaca é o mais austral para América do Norte durante o Pleistoceno
tardio e o de lacertilios scincomorfos, o primeiro no Pleistoceno de Oaxaca. Os registros das famílias Bulimulidae, Polygyridae e
Urocoptidae são os primeiros para o México e permitem estender a distribuição geográfica destes táxons de moluscos desde o sul
dos Estados Unidos até o sul do México, durante o Pleistoceno tardio.

Palavras-chave: Rancholabreano, Pleistoceno, Mammalia, Mollusca, Oaxaca, Mixteca.

INTRODUCTION characterized by a great climatic instability that had severe

impact on the taxonomic richness, geographic distribution,
The Pleistocene is the most recent geologic epoch before and structure of the North American animal communities
Holocene, beginning about 2.58 My and ending between (Arroyo-Cabrales et al., 2002; Montellano-Ballesteros &
10,000 or 9,500 years BP (Walker & Geissman, 2009). It is Jiménez-Hidalgo, 2006).

15
16 REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA, 14(1), 2011
The Pleistocene was also the last geologic epoch when a
great diversity of large mammals inhabited North America,
such as mammoths, glyptodonts, horses, camels, ground
sloths, dire wolves and saber-tooth cats, among others. Its
ending is marked by a great extinction of the megafauna in
various continents. It is estimated that around 72% of large
mammal genera became extinct in North America and at
present there is not agreement about what caused this
massive decrease in mammalian biodiversity (Koch &
Barnosky, 2006; Prothero, 2006; Gill et al., 2009).
Mexican Pleistocene sediments are widely distributed and
it is common to find fossil remains all over the country, but
unfortunately, a large part of faunal discoveries are isolated,
without stratigraphic control. In many instances, there is
neither locality information nor are the taxonomic
identifications accurate (Arroyo-Cabrales et al., 2002). The
better-studied Pleistocene Mexican faunas include the
Irvingtonian El Golfo de Santa Clara, in Sonora, as well as the
Rancholabrean faunas: Rancho La Brisca and Terapa
S
(Lindsay, 1984; Van Devender et al., 1985; Mead et al., 2006),
Chapala in Jalisco (Lucas, 2008 and references therein), San
Josecito Cave in Nuevo Leon (Arroyo-Cabrales & Johnson,
A
1995, 2003, and references therein), Tequixquiac in the State
of Mexico (Hibbard, 1955), Santa Cruz Nuevo in Puebla (Tovar
et al., 2007); the Irvingtonian-Rancholabrean El Cedazo fauna,
V
from Aguascalientes (Mooser & Dalquest, 1975; Montellano-
Ballesteros, 1992); and the Late Pleistocene and Holocene
Loltún Cave in Yucatán (Arroyo-Cabrales & Álvarez, 2003;
O
Morales-Mejía et al., 2009). Except for the last one, the faunas
are located in northern and central Mexico, i.e., within or
north to the Transmexican Volcanic Belt; thus, there is much
R
more information about the Neartic Pleistocene faunas
compared with those from the Neotropical southeastern (or
southern) Mexico (Ferrusquía-Villafranca et al., 2007;
P
Jiménez-Hidalgo et al., 2007).
Consequently, at present the picture of the Mexican
Pleistocene fauna is biased because the knowledge of the
Neotropical community is incomplete. It is unknown if the
Late Pleistocene extinction event was isochronous with that
from the temperate North America, or as in the Pliocene, some
lineages persisted longer in subtropical and tropical North
America than in the northern areas (Jiménez-Hidalgo &
Carranza-Castañeda, 2005; Montellano-Ballesteros & Jiménez-
Hidalgo, 2006; Jiménez-Hidalgo & Carranza-Castañeda, 2009).
Also, biogeographic patterns of Pleistocene North American
mammals cannot be completely reconstructed at present
because there is not enough information about the
geographic distribution of many species (Montellano-
Ballesteros & Jiménez-Hidalgo, 2006; Jiménez-Hidalgo et al.,
2007; Arroyo-Cabrales et al., 2008).
In the State of Oaxaca (southern Mexico) the twenty-
known Pleistocene mammal localities represent the 2.58% of
all the Mexican Pleistocenic localities (Arroyo-Cabrales et
al., 2002). Published descriptions with taxonomic
identification of the fossil material and stratigraphic
descriptions of localities do not exist or sometimes they are
in grey literature (e.g. Doutt & Craig, 1962; Ochoterena &
Silva-Bárcenas, 1970; Silva-Bárcenas, 1993; Quevedo-Robles
& Quevedo de Henell, 2001). This is also the case for the
Mixteca Alta (a culturally important region of northwestern
Oaxaca in which the prehispanic Mixteca culture developed),
where there are just three brief mentions of Pleistocene
mammals (Doutt & Craig, 1962; Ferrusquía-Villafranca, 1970;
Quevedo-Robles & Quevedo de Henell, 2001).
With the aim of increasing the information of the
Neotropical Mexican Pleistocene faunas, and particularly
those of the Pleistocene of Oaxaca, a paleontological project
was carried on in the area of la Mixteca Alta, northwestern
Oaxaca. The assemblage of invertebrates, reptiles and
mammals recovered from the Late Pleistocene sediments of
the study area (Figure 1), is named Viko vijin Local Fauna (L.
F.), which in Mixtecan language means “cold epoch, period
or time.” The purpose of this paper is to describe these new
fossil localities, to make some remarks about the taphonomy
and identified vertebrates and mollusk taxa and to settle some
inferences about the probable habitat of the study area during
the Late Pleistocene.
The taxa collected include medium to very large-sized
mammals as well as terrestrial and freshwater gastropods and
bivalves (Figures 3, 4). Additionally, diverse mollusks, rodent
molars and lizard remains represent the microfossils.
The fossil material is now under detailed study and it will be
formally described in subsequent papers. Here, it is convenient
to make some comments about the characters observed in the
taxa identified, and about the significance of their records in the
Late Pleistocene of the Mixteca Alta oaxaqueña.
The specimens are housed at the Colección Científica del
Laboratorio de Paleobiología, Instituto de Recursos, campus
Puerto Escondido, Universidad del Mar, under the prefix
UMLP for invertebrates and UMPE for vertebrates. Upper
and lower teeth are represented by upper and lower case:
DP/dp (deciduous premolar), P/p (premolar), M/m (molar).
All measurements are expressed in millimeters (mm).
GEOLOGIC SETTING AND TAPHONOMY
The study area is within the Sierra Madre del Sur
physiographic province and the Tierras Altas de Oaxaca sub-
province, between 17º35’-17º55’N and 97º20’-97º40’W (Figu-
re 1). The area shows a complex relief with an altitude between
1800-2400 m and diverse intermontane basins, which are filled
with continental deposits of Tertiary and Quaternary age
(Ortíz Pérez et al., 2004).
General geology of the study area
The oldest rock outcrops in the area are the Cretaceous
limestones and dolomites of the Teposcolula Formation, and
marl of the Yucumana Formation. These marine rocks are
discordantly overlain by the Paleocene?-Eocene Tamazulapan
Formation, composed of a carbonaceous conglomerate with
a sandy matrix, which also discordantly underlies the
Yanhuitlan Formation, the latter consisting of red to cream
colored clay, siltstone and some fine-grained sandstone beds
of Middle Eocene age (Ferrusquía-Villafranca, 1970; Gonzáles-
 JIMÉNEZ-HIDALGO ET AL. – LATE PLEISTOCENE VIKO VIJIN LOCAL FAUNA FROM OAXACA
Ramos et al., 2000; Santamaría-Díaz et al., 2008). Oligocene
rocks include the informal volcaniclastic Teotongo unit,
represented by greenish gray tuffaceous sandstone and lithic
tuff (Santamaría-Díaz et al., 2008) and the Llano de Lobos
Tuff, constituted by pink tuff, tuffaceous siltstone, ignimbrite,
conglomerate and sandstone (Ferrusquía-Villafranca, 1970);
both units discordantly overlie the Yanhuitlan Formation.
Finally, Quaternary deposits cap the stratigraphic sequence
filling the lower part of valleys, rivers and ravines of the
study area, as described in more detail below. At different
sites there are diverse andesitic intrusive bodies of Permian
to Miocene age (Santamaría-Díaz et al., 2008).
Stratigraphy of fossil localities
The Pleistocene fossils have been recovered from six
localities that are within the ravines of the municipalities of
Concepción Buenavista, San Antonio Acutla, Teotongo and
Villa Tejupam de la Unión (Figure 1). The fossil localities are
sequentially numbered as: Oax-2 El Pedernal, Oax-3 La Pedrera,
S
Oax-4 Río Salado, Oax-5 Llano de Hueso, Oax-6 Cañada del
Misterio and Oax-7 Río Tejupam. The stratigraphic description
of each locality is given below.
A
In the northeastern part of the study area, southwest of
the town of Concepción Buenavista, in the locality Oax-2 El
Pedernal, the stratigraphic sequence begins with a light
V
greenish gray (10Y 8/1), medium bedded vitric tuff that is
discordantly covered by a light greenish gray colored (10Y
7/1) massive bed, constituted by well-indurated, poorly
O
sorted, fine- and medium-grained sand with subangular to
PR
Figure 1. Topographic map of the study area in northwestern Oaxaca, southern Mexico.
17
subrounded clasts; it bears lenses of silt and gravel at several
levels (Figure 2). A characteristic feature of this bed is the
presence of 2.0-10.0 cm diameter nodular caliche or calcrete,
especially in its bottom half. The Pleistocene fossil specimens
where recovered from the basal part (50-100 cm) of this massive
sandy bed. In some places it shows cross bedding, whereas in
others it appears pseudo-stratified. The caliche nodules are in
the same fossiliferous level bed and sometimes are in direct
association with the fossil specimens. The fossil bearing bed is
discordantly overlain by four thick beds of fine- and medium
grained light brown (7.5 YR 6/3) sand, with some lenses of gravel
in the first two bottom beds. In the top of the sequence there is
a layer of soil of about 35 cm (Figure 2).
To the northeast of the Concepción Buenavista, in locality
Oax-3 La Pedrera, the base of the stratigraphic sequence is
represented by fine-grained, pale yellow (2.5Y 8/2), cross-
stratified tuffaceous sand with laminar stratification, which
is discordantly overlain by a breccia with dark brown (10YR
3/3) basalt clasts and sandy matrix. The breccia is discordantly
overlain by a thick bed of pale yellow (2.5Y 8/3) silty clay
with few lenses of gravel and moderately sorted fine-grained
sand (Figure 2). This bed becomes more compact towards its
bottom, so, apparently it is composed by three layers, of
which the middle bears the Pleistocene fossils. In this bed
there are several caliche nodules with a diameter of 1.0 cm to
8.0 cm, which also are associated with the fossils. A gravel
layer with clasts from 2 to 10 cm in diameter and sandy matrix
caps the silty clay bed. Above the gravel there is a soil bed of
around 30 cm thick.
18 REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA, 14(1), 2011
In the surroundings of Santiago Teotongo and San Anto-
nio Acutla (Figure 1), in localities Oax-4 Río Salado, Oax-5
Llano de Hueso and Oax-6 Cañada del Misterio, the
stratigraphic sequence starts with the Yanhuitlan Formation
that in some places contain gypsum filling fractures; it is
discordantly covered by a thick bed of light olive gray (5Y 6/
2), well-indurated, fine-grained silty sand with lenses of
poorly sorted, fine- and medium-grained sand as well as gravel
(Figure 2); within the gray fine-grained silty sand there are
small rhizolithes (1-5 mm in length). The Pleistocene fossils
have been collected from this bed and there also are several
calcrete or caliche nodules within it that sometimes are
associated with fossils. Three beds of reddish brown (5 YR
5/4), fine-grained silty sand with some gravel lenses
discordantly cover the fossiliferous bed. Capping the
sequence there is a ~35 cm thick soil layer.
Near Villa Tejupam de la Unión (Figure 1), in locality Oax-
7 Río Tejupam, the stratigraphic sequence is similar to the
description above, it only differs in that the fossil bearing
S
bed is a light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3), fine-grained silty sand
with lenses of clay and gravel (Figure 2). As in the other
Pleistocene sediments, Oax-7 bears several calcrete nodules
A
ranging from 1 cm to 8 cm in diameter.
The above-described sediments are common in fluvial
depositional environments (Boggs, 2001). The fossiliferous
V
RO
P
Figure 2. Stratigraphic profiles of the Rancholabrean fossil localities that contain the Viko vijin Local Fauna of the Mixteca Alta oaxaqueña,
southern Mexico.
sediments of locality Oax-2 El Pedernal apparently were
deposited as lateral bar sequences, which are characterized
by the presence of medium and fine-grained cross-bedded
sand; the absence of very coarse-grained sediments (cobbles
and boulders) at the base of the sequence suggest that the
deposit is not a longitudinal bar (Reineck & Singh, 1975;
Miall, 1982; Nichols, 1999). In locality Oax-3 La Pedrera, the
fine-grained bearing sediment is indicative of a floodplain
deposit, which is characterized by the predominance of silt
and clay (Boggs, 2001; Nichols, 1999).
The fine-grained sediments of the remaining fossil
localities (Oax-4 to Oax-7), suggest that deposition occurred
in natural leeves or the upward section of bars, since silt and
fine-grained sand dominate such deposits (Miall, 1982;
Reineck & Singh, 1975). The lenses of gravel, sand and clay
that are within the fossil bearing sediments in all the localities
seem to represent scour-and-fill structures (Reineck & Singh,
1975).
Taphonomic considerations
Diverse fossil and sediment characteristics were
considered to evaluate the potential taphonomic bias of the
faunal assemblage. The mammalian fossil material includes
isolated upper and lower molars, isolated poscranial elements
(humerus, scapula, radius, tibia, metapodial, vertebrae,
 JIMÉNEZ-HIDALGO ET AL. – LATE PLEISTOCENE VIKO VIJIN LOCAL FAUNA FROM OAXACA
osteoderms, ribs and sacra), some jaws and skulls with teeth
of medium to very large-sized mammals, as well as complete
or almost complete mollusk individuals. Thus, the specimens
are moderately to well preserved.
In addition to micro-mollusks, sediment screen washing
resulted in the recovery of some rodent molars and postcranial
fragments, as well as several lizard cranial fragments with teeth
and some postcranial fragments from the fine-grained sand-size
concentrate. The majority of the mollusk specimens were
discovered together in lenses from the same stratigraphic level
in which the bones occur; occasionally, bones and mollusks
were found close together. Sometimes freshwater gastropods
were in direct association with the bones in life position (i.e.
with their mouth directed toward the bone surface).
The mollusk specimens do not have signs of dissolution
or abrasion and there is not an evident size selection or sorting
because individuals of different sizes were found together.
Some gastropods lost small parts of the aperture and several
bivalve specimens are still articulated.
S
The above-mentioned observations suggest a short and
very limited fluvial transport and a rapid burial of the invertebrates
(Kidwell & Flessa, 1996; Kotzian & Simões, 2006).
A
Similarly, the fossil bones were scattered among the
localities; they were not concentrated in clusters. A small
V
number of bones show few parallel cracking to fibrous grain
of bone on their surface and this cracking is confined to the
outermost layer of bone; however, the majority of specimens
look “fresh” with no sign of cracking or flaking. So, they can
O
be assigned to weathering stage 0 or stage 1 of Fiorillo (1988)
and considered as little weathered. This suggests a rapid
burial of specimens after losing their soft tissues, being
R
disarticulated and scattered, given that the bulk of bones
were collected as isolated elements.
Figure 3. Some mammalian specimens of the Rancholabrean Viko vijin Local Fauna of Oaxaca, southern Mexico. A, Mammuthus lower
molar fragment, occlusal view; B, medium-sized Equus teeth series with DP4-M2, occlusal view (rostral side toward left page margin); C,
Bison horn-core fragment, caudal view; D, Glyptotherium articulated caudal osteoderms, dorsal view. Scale bars: A-C = 3 cm; D = 5 cm.
19
Various bones are complete while others are broken and
incomplete; those broken have sharp and acute edges, which
evidence little or no abrasion; also, there is no indication of
carnivore modification. Broken bones could result from trampling
after burial (Behrensmeyer & Hook, 1992). Complete specimens
have well-defined processes that also are not polished.
The specimens do not have hydraulic equivalence with
the fine-grained bearing sediments; they do not show severe
water sorting, because bones of each of the three “Voorhies
Groups” of dispersal potential in flowing water have been
collected, and several fragile specimens such as pelves and
skulls were collected complete. Additional indication of limited
water sorting of the mammal bones is the 1.27 teeth/vertebrae
ratio of the specimens collected. Ratios near 1.0 indicate an
unsorted assemblage because vertebrae (easily transported)
occur at the same numbers of teeth (difficult to transport)
(Cassiliano, 1997). These features suggest very restricted
fluvial transport of the mammal bones collected during this
study (Cassiliano, 1997; Moore & Norman, 2009).
Contrary to the bones of medium and large-sized mammals,
microvertebrate specimens have hydraulic equivalence with
the coarser grains of bearing sediments and some show little
polishing, evidence of some fluvial transport. But this might
be short because although broken, the majority of specimens
are recognizable; also, they are fragile and could not have
survived a prolonged transport.
The minimal transport and sorting of vertebrate and
invertebrate specimens are strong indicators of the
indigenous origin (Raup & Stanley, 1978) of the Viko vijin L.
F., which seems to be produced within the local habitat of the
fossilized species.
It is known that time-averaging is common in fluvial
depositional environments due to erosional reworking of
20 REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA, 14(1), 2011
overbank deposits, with a time resolution between 102 to 104
years (Behrensmeyer, 1982; Kidwell & Flessa, 1996). The
almost complete absence of abrasion and polishing of fossil
specimens, the occurrence of mostly one weathering stage
of mammal bones and the good preservation of the fragile
fossil mollusks shells, as well as the presence of just one
fossiliferous level in the study area. These evidences likewise
suggests that a short-time span is recorded in the Viko vijin
L. F, with no signs of substantial temporal mixing or reworking
of older fossils into the bearing sediments.
Fluvial fossil assemblages with large amount of time-
averaging contain specimens with diverse weathering stages,
the specimens are polished and abraded to several degrees,
and the reworked specimens look much different from the
rest of the sample (Behrensmeyer, 1982; Kidwell & Flessa,
1996; Cassiliano, 1997). Additionally, it is common that bones
are associated with abundant reworked mud-clasts or
carbonate-clasts (Behrensmeyer, 1982) and there is a
preponderance of complex and multistoried sheets of sand
S
and moderately developed paleosols in the fossil deposits
(Aslan & Behrensmeyer, 1996), features not observed in the
localities described in this study.
A
Therefore, we consider the Viko vijin L. F. an indigenous
(Raup & Stanley, 1978) and within habitat assemblage carrying
an ecological signal (Kidwell & Flessa, 1996). Without doubt,
V
it represents several communities as defined by ecologist
(diverse generations mixed); but it can be considered what
some authors refer to as a metacommunity, which therefore
O
allows consideration of the dynamics of natural systems in
time and space (Eronen, 2007; Tomašových & Kidwell, 2010).
R
SYSTEMATIC PALEONTOLOGY
Class GASTROPODA
P
Order STYLOMMATOPHORA Schmidt, 1865
Family PUPILLIDAE Pilsbry, 1916
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 1-Oax 3 with 70 specimens,
from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMLP-Lote 2-Oax 3 with 46
Figure 4. Some invertebrate specimens of the Rancholabrean Viko vijin Local Fauna of Oaxaca, southern Mexico. A, cf. Anisospira; B,
cf. Orthalicus; C, Polygyra; D, Physa; E, Succineidae indet.; F, Pisidium. Scale bar = 1 cm.
specimens, from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMLP-Lote 3-
Oax 3 with 2 specimens, from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera.
Remarks. The shells of the specimens are small, with a typical
pupilliform form, always taller than wide. The aperture is
rounded and free.
Family ORTHALICIDAE Albers, 1850
cf. Orthalicus Beck, 1837
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 1-Oax 6 with 9 specimens,
from locality Oax-6 Cañada del Misterio.
Remarks. These specimens have a big and ovate-conical
shell. Their shell surface is smooth. The body whorls are
broadly expanded.
Family UROCOPTIDAE Pilsbry, 1898
cf. Anisospira Strebel, 1880
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 2-Oax 6 with 35 specimens,
from locality Oax-6 Cañada del Misterio.
Remarks. The shells of these specimens are decollate and
cylindrical, moderately large. The whorls increase in size from
the apex to about the middle of shell, thereafter remaining
uniform in size. The aperture is free, nearly circular.
Family SUCCINEIDAE Beck, 1837
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 4-Oax 3 with 45 specimens,
from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMLP-Lote 1-Oax 2 with 50
specimens, from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal.
Remarks. These shells are thin and have a pear shape, near
ovate. The spire is short. The aperture is large and oval.
Family POLYGYRIDAE Pilsbry, 1895
Polygyra Say, 1818
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 5-Oax 3 with 34 specimens,
from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMLP-Lote 2-Oax 2 with 60
specimens, from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal; UMLP-Lote 3-
 JIMÉNEZ-HIDALGO ET AL. – LATE PLEISTOCENE VIKO VIJIN LOCAL FAUNA FROM OAXACA
Oax 6 with 57 specimens, from locality Oax-6 La Cañada del
Misterio; UMLP-Lote 1-Oax 5 with 13 specimens, from locality
Oax-5 Llano de Hueso; UMLP-Lote 1-Oax 4 with 8 specimens,
from locality Oax-4 Río Salado; UMLP-Lote 1-Oax 7 with 11
specimens, from locality Oax-7 Río Tejupam.
Remarks. The shells of these specimens are medium-sized,
disc-shaped or globose. The spire is almost flat. The
umbilicus is small. The aperture is rounded.
Order BASOMMATOPHORA Keferstein, 1864
Family PHYSIDAE Fitzinger, 1833
Physa Draparnaud, 1801
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 2-Oax 4 with 5 specimens,
from locality Oax-4 Río Salado.
Remarks. These shells are sinistral, small to medium-sized.
The shells are conical and their spiral body whorl is expanded.
Family LYMNAEIDAE Rafinesque, 1815
S
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 6-Oax 3 with 30 specimens,
from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMLP-Lote 3-Oax 2 with 33
specimens, from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal.
A
Remarks. These shells are small and elongated, higher than
wide. The wall of the shell is thin. The spire is pointed. The
aperture is elongate and ovate.
V
Family PLANORBIDAE Rafinesque, 1815
Referred material. UMLP-Lote 4-Oax 2 with 134 specimens,
O
from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal; UMLP-Lote 5-Oax 2 with 95
specimens, from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal; UMLP-Lote 4-
Oax 6 with 80 specimens, from locality Oax-6 La Cañada del
R
Misterio.
Remarks. The shells are discoid, almost planispiral. The shell
surface has many growth rings. The umbilicus, when present,
P
is large and wide. Some specimens are very small.
Class BIVALVIA
Subclass HETERODONTA Neumayr, 1884
Order VENEROIDA Adams & Adams, 1856
Family PISIDIIDAE Gray, 1857
Pisidium Pfeiffer, 1821
Referred material. UMLP- Lote 7-Oax 3 with 46 specimens,
from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMLP-Lote 6-Oax 2 with 79
specimens from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal; UMLP-Lote 5-
Oax 6 with 34 specimens from locality Oax-6 La Cañada del
Misterio; UMLP-Lote 2-Oax 5 with 3 specimens from locality
Oax-5 Llano de Hueso.
Remarks. The shells are small and oval, with the anteroventral
margin rounded. The left valve has two cardinal teeth and
the right valve has only one cardinal tooth.
Class REPTILIA
Order SQUAMATA Oppel, 1811
Infraorder SCINCOMORPHA Camp, 1923
Referred material. UMPE-069, maxillary with teeth from
locality Oax-6 Cañada del Misterio.
21
Remarks. The specimen is small (length: 2 mm); their teeth
are short and cylindrical, with simple conical to subrounded
crown. These tooth morphology is common among the
Scincomorpha. In addition to UMPE-069, there are some other
lizard specimens that are now under study to establish their
taxonomic identity. This is the first record of lizards for the
Mixteca Alta and the first of Pleistocene squamates in Oaxaca.
Class MAMMALIA
Order XENARTHRA Cope, 1889
Suborder CINGULATA Illiger, 1811
Family GLYPTODONTIDAE Gray, 1869
Glyptotherium Osborn, 1903
Referred material. UMPE-0021, incomplete caudal tube from
locality Oax-4 Río Salado.
Remarks. The caudal tube is articulated, it consists of six
caudal rings and each ring is composed of three rows of
pentagonal and hexagonal osteoderms. The morphology of
UMPE-0021 is typical of Glyptotherium, with two or three
osteodem rows per ring, but the dorsal osteoderms of the
distal rows are flat, the conical osteoderms are limited to the
ventral side of each row.
This is the first record of Glyptotherium in the
Rancholabrean of the Mixteca Alta Oaxaqueña (Pérez-Cres-
po et al., 2008).
Order RODENTIA
Family MURIDAE Illiger, 1811
Subfamily SIGMODONTINAE Wagner, 1843
Referred material. UMPE-0070, m1; UMPE-0071, m2, both
specimens from locality Oax-6 Cañada del Misterio.
Remarks. The molars are brachydont, of small size and the
typical zigzag occlusal pattern of the group. Besides these
molars there are some additional rodent specimens that are
now under study to establish their taxonomic identity.
The Rancholabrean record of Rodentia indet. and the
sigmodontine rodents in the study area are the first in the
Mixteca Alta of Oaxaca; previous Pleistocene records were
from central and northeastern Oaxaca (Pérez-Crespo et al.,
2008).
Order ARTIODACTYLA Owen, 1848
Suborder TYLOPODA Illiger, 1811
Family CAMELIDAE Gray, 1821
Camelops Leidy, 1854
Referred material. UMPE-0026, lower molar from locality Oax-
2 El Pedernal; UMPE-0072, upper molar from locality Oax-4
Río Salado.
Remarks. Both molars are large, hypsodont and have the
flat ectoloph typical of Camelops. This record of Camelops
is the first in the late Pleistocene of the Mixteca Alta
oaxaqueña (Pérez-Crespo et al., 2008), and links the record of
the Tequixquiac fauna, in central Mexico, and Yeroconte L.
F., in Honduras (Hibbard, 1955; Webb & Perrigo, 1984).
22 REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA, 14(1), 2011
Hemiauchenia Gervais & Ameghino, 1880
Referred material. UMPE-0016, tibia from locality Oax-4 Río
Salado.
Remarks. The specimen is long and slender, as the limb bones
in this Lamini genus. Previously Hemiauchenia was reported
in the Late Pleistocene El Cedazo fauna and also in Hidalgo
State, central Mexico, as well as in the Loltun Cave (in the
Yucatan Peninsula), which is about at the same latitude as is
the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (Mooser & Dalquest, 1975;
Arroyo & Álvarez, 2003; Cuevas-Ruíz, 2005). This new record
in northwestern Oaxaca extends its North American
geographic distribution from central and eastern Mexico to
southern Mexico during the Rancholabrean.
Suborder RUMINANTIA Scopoli, 1777
Family CERVIDAE Gray, 1821
Odocoileus Rafinesque, 1832
Referred material. UMPE-0073, almost complete antler from
S
locality Oax-6 Cañada del Misterio.
Remarks. The antler is bifurcated and with small longitudi-
nal protuberances on a pedicel’s half. This is the second
A
Odocoileus Pleistocene record from Oaxaca and the first for
the Mixteca Alta oaxaqueña (Pérez-Crespo et al., 2008).
V
Family BOVIDAE Gray, 1821
Bison Hamilton-Smith, 1827
O
Referred material. UMPE-0013, P4, UMPE-0018, horncore
fragment, both from Oax-2 El Pedernal; UMPE-0074 almost
complete skull from locality Oax-3 La Pedrera; UMPE-0012,
R
lower molar fragment from locality Oax-4 Río Salado.
Remarks. The molars are hypsodont and with the typical
bovid occlusal pattern. The horncores are medium-sized and
P
stout. The skull has procumbent orbits, it lacks the nasals
and its occipitals are nearly flat.
The presence of Bison in the localities, suggests a
Rancholabrean North American Land Mammal age for the
Viko vijin L. F. (Bell et. al., 2004).
Order PERISSODACTYLA Owen, 1848
Family EQUIDAE Gray, 1821
Equus sp.
Referred material. UMPE-0008, maxillary fragment with DP4-
M3 from locality Oax-7 Río Tejupam; UMPE-0009 to UMPE-
0011, molars from locality Oax-4 Río Salado; UMPE-0019, two
lower molars from locality Oax-5 Llano de Hueso; UMPE-023,
phalanx I-III from locality Oax-4 Río Salado; UMPE-0077, skull
from locality Oax-5 Llano de Hueso.
Remarks. The skull is slightly depressed, it has full dentition,
their molars are hypsodont to very hypsodont, have plicated
fossetes and strong styles.
As in other Late Pleistocene faunas from Mexico, such as
Texquixquiac and El Cedazo, in the study area there are two
different sizes of Equus based on teeth. One consists of large
teeth which are ~32 % larger that the other taxon based on
medium-sized-teeth.
Recent quantitative studies on Pleistocene equids from
Mexico indicate that these size differences reflect different
species (Melgarejo-Damian & Montellano-Ballesteros, 2008).
In addition of differences in size, the Mixteca Alta specimens
show several differences in morphological character states
that suggest the presence of two species. The material is
now under detailed study to establish their species identity.
Order PROBOSCIDEA Illiger, 1811
Family GOMPHOTHERIIDAE Hay, 1922
Cuvieronius Osborn, 1923
Referred material. UMPE-0001, complete pelvis from locality
Oax-2 El Pedernal.
Remarks. The specimen is large and stout, the rostral part of
the ilium crest is almost the same size as the caudal portion.
The acetabulum is stout.
The genus has been reported south of the study area,
near the city of Tlaxiaco (Ochoterena & Silva-Bárcenas, 1970).
Family ELEPHANTIDAE Gray, 1821
Mammuthus Brooks, 1828
Referred material. UMPE-0025, UMPE-0027 and UMPE-0028,
three lumbar vertebrae from locality Oax-7 Río Tejupam; UMPE-
0029, lower molar from locality Oax-4 Río Salado; UMPE-0076,
almost complete tusk from locality Oax-2 El Pedernal.
Remarks. The vertebrae have a wide vertebral foramen and
short spinous process. The lower molar has the typical
loxodont occlusal pattern of the genus. The tusk has a circu-
lar cross-section and is strongly curved.
Together with the Equus remains, those of Mammuthus
are the most abundant in the study area.
CONSIDERATIONS ABOUT THE FAUNAL
ASSEMBLAGE
The mammalian taxa identified from the Viko vijin L. F.,
Oaxaca, are also present at other several well-known
Rancholabrean faunas of central and northern Mexico (Table
1). The faunal association from the Mixteca Alta shares nine
taxa with the more northern faunas of Terapa (Sonora), Chapala
(Jalisco), El Cedazo (Aguascalientes), and Tequixquiac
(Mexico) (Table 1).
The Hormiguero L. F. in El Salvador and the Yeroconte L.
F. in Honduras, share four taxa with the the Viko vijin L. F.
(Table 1). The Late Pleistocene faunas of Nicaragua and Cos-
ta Rica share three taxa with the Viko vijin L. F. (Table 1). The
faunas of Panama share three taxa and instead of
Glyptotherium, Glyptodon is recorded (Cisneros, 2005,
Pearson, 2005). Laurito & Aguilar (2007) reported Mammuthus
columbi in three Pleistocene localities from El Salvador, but
not in the Hormiguero L. F.
The record of several mammalian taxa in northern, central
and southern Mexico, as well as in Central America, suggest
that they had a wide geographic distribution during the Late
Pleistocene.
 JIMÉNEZ-HIDALGO ET AL. – LATE PLEISTOCENE VIKO VIJIN LOCAL FAUNA FROM OAXACA 23

The invertebrate specimens collected from the Mixteca
Alta oaxaqueña are the first records of continental Pleistocene
mollusks from Oaxaca. Five gastropod taxa are terrestrial, three
are freshwater taxa and the bivalve genus also indicates
freshwater. The mollusk families of the Viko vijin L. F. are of
Neartic affinities because their members have been recovered
from several Late Pleistocene and early Holocene localities
in northern and central Mexico, as well as diverse Pleistocene
localities from Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and South Dakota
(Table 2). The Viko vijin L. F. shares five mollusk families
with the Late Pleistocene Rancho La Amapola, San Luis Potosí,
central Mexico. It also shares three families with the Lecho
Seco del Lago de Tlahuac in the Valley of Mexico and
Valsequillo in the Valley of Puebla (Table 2).
The records of these mollusk families in the Late
Pleistocene of the Mixteca Alta oaxaqueña are at present
their southernmost geographic limit in North America. The
families Bulimulidae, Polygyridae and Urocoptidae are
recorded for the first time in the Late Pleistocene of Mexico
and their presence at the Viko vijin L. F. allows to extend their
geographic range from southern USA localities to southern
Mexico.
HABITAT CONSIDERATIONS
Paleoecological studies have shown that dietary
preferences of fossil mammals provide insight about their
habitat, given that they are intimately related to the vegetation
available in a geographic area (e.g. Dompierre & Churcher,
1996; Merceron et al., 2007; Rivals et al., 2008; Pushkina et
al., 2010).
Therefore, in order to have a first approximation about
the habitat of the study area during the Late Pleistocene, the
probable dietary preferences of the taxa identified during this
study were determined using literature and the results are
shown in Table 3. Forty four percent of the mammalian genera
identified in the Viko vijin L. F., were mainly grazers, while
the rest were mixed feeders or browsers (MacFadden &
Cerling, 1996; Koch et al., 1998; Feranec, 2004; Prado et al.,
2005; Rivals et al., 2007; DeSantis et al., 2009). This suggests

S
Table 1. Shared taxa between the Rancholabrean Viko vijin Local Fauna from Oaxaca and the better-studied Late Pleistocene mammalian faunas from
México and Central America. Abbreviations: Ter, Terapa, Sonora State; Cha, Chapala, Jalisco State; SJos, San Josecito Cave, Nuevo León

A
State; Ced, El Cedazo, Aguascalientes State; Tex,Tequixquiac, Estado de México; SCruz, Santa Cruz Nuevo, Puebla State; Lol, Lotún Cave,
Yucatan State; Vv, Viko vijin, Oaxaca; Hor, Hormiguero, El Salvador; Yer, Yeroconte, Honduras; Nic, Nicaraguan faunas; CoR, Costa Rican
faunas; Pan, Panamian faunas. (Data from Hibbard, 1955; Mooser & Dalquest, 1975; Miller & Carranza-Castañeda, 1984; Webb & Perrigo, 1984;
Montellano-Ballesteros, 1992; Lucas et al., 1997; Cisneros, 2005; Pearson, 2005; Meade et al., 2006; Laurito & Aguilar, 2007; Lucas et al., 2008).

Xenarthra
Taxa

Mylodontidae
Ter

i i
V
Cha SJos Ced

i
Tex

i
SCruz Lol Vv Hor Yer Nic CoR Pan

O
Glyptodontidae i i
Glyptotherium i i i i i i i i
Pampatheriidae i i i i i

R
i i i i i
Lagomorpha i
Rodentia
i i i i
Geomyidae i

P
Hydrochaeridae i i i
Muridae i i i i i i
i
Carnivora i
Canidae i i i i i
i i
Felidae i i i i i i i
i i
Procyonidae i i i i
Perissodactyla
Equidae
Equus sp. A medium-sized i i i i i i i
i i i i i
Equus sp. B large-sized i i i i i
Tapiridae i i i i
Artiodactyla
Tayassuidae i i i i i
Camelidae
Camelops i i i i i
Hemiauchenia i i i i i i i
Cervidae
Odocoileus i i i i i
i
Antilocapridae i i i i i i
i
Bovidae
Bison i i i i i i i i
Proboscidea
Gomphoteriidae
Cuvieronius i i i i i i
i i i
Elephantidae
Mammuthus i i i i i i i i
24 REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA, 14(1), 2011

that in addition to grasses and herbs there was a significant
component of trees and bushes available to these
herbivores.
Likewise, the geographic distribution of mollusks among
the fossil localities also suggests an environment with trees
and bushes and some semi-permanent water ponds and water
streams (Table 4). The freshwater taxa were collected in the
surroundings of the town of Concepción Buenavista
(northeastern part of the area) and the tree-dwellers were
collected in the ravines of Santiago Acutla (in the central part
of the study area) (Figure 1).
As was stated in the stratigraphic descriptions, the
fossiliferous Pleistocene sediments bear caliche or calcrete
nodules, which are absent from the upper and lower beds;
remarkably, many of the mammalian specimens have caliche
nodules adhered to them. It is known that caliche nodules
suggests arid to semiarid conditions where evaporative loss
exceeds the supply of water to the surface by rainfall or
could indicate a dry environment during the burial (or may be
the fossilization) of some of the mammalian remains in the
study area. This is also supported by the interpretation that
the faunal assemblage is an attritional one and likely spans
some thousands of years.
This association of freshwater mollusks, mammal bones
and caliche nodules, suggest that periods of dry conditions,
alternating with others that were more humid, occurred
during the deposition of the Late Pleistocene fossiliferous
sediments.
The dietary preferences of mammals, the habitat
preferences of mollusks and depositional environment of
localities, together suggest that the probable habitat of the
Rancholabrean Viko vijin L. F. was some type of woodland
(Reed, 1998) with grass, a significant component of trees and
bush coverage and some semi-permanent ponds and flowing
waters (at least during some periods of time) within a cool-
temperate environment given the altitude (1800-2400 m) of

S
flooding (Esteban & Klappa, 1983; Reading, 1996). Therefore, the study area.
the caliche nodules in association with the mammal fossils Future dating of fossil localities will establish the precise
age of deposition and stable isotope analyses will elucidate

A
Table 2. Shared mollusk taxa between the Late Pleistocene Viko precisely the climate and habitat, as well as the dietary
vijin Local Fauna of Oaxaca and the Late Pleistocene Mexican
preferences of the mammals from the Mixteca Alta oaxaqueña
localities with records of invertebrates; some USA faunas are also
shown. (Data from Taylor, 1954; Schultz & Cheatum, 1970; Jass et during the Late Pleistocene.

V
al., 2002; Arroyo-Cabrales et al., 2008). Abbreviations: Vv, Viko
vijin L. F., Oaxaca; RA, Rancho La Ampola, San Luis Potosi; VA,
Villa Acuña, Coahuila (Pleistocene?); RC, Randal County, Texas;
Bf, Berends fauna, High Plains, Kansas and Oklahoma; BH, Black
Table 3. Feeding preferences of the mammalian taxa from the
Rancholabrean Viko vijin Local Fauna, northwestern Oaxaca,
southern Mexico. See text for bibliographic references of feeding

O
Hills, South Dakota. preferences of the genera.

Taxa/Localities Vv RA VA Va RC Bf BH Taxa Feeding preferences

R
Pupillidae i i i i i i i Mammalia

Orthalicidae i i Glyptodontidae

P
Glyptotherium Grazer/aquatic grazer
Succineidae i i
Rodentia
Urocoptidae i
indet.
Succineidae i i i i i
Sigmodontinae
Polygyridae i
Camelidae
Physidae i i i i i
Hemiauchenia Browser-like mixed feeder
Lymnaeidae i i i i i i
Camelops Mixed feeder
Planorbidae i i i i i i Cervidae
Carychiidae Odocoileus Browser
Vallonidae i i i Bovidae
Vertiginidae i Bison Mixed feeder/ grazer
Spiraxidae Equidae
Helicodiscidae i i i Equus sp. A medium-sized This genus traditionally has
Euconulidae Equus sp. B large-sized been considered grazer
Vitrinidae Gomphotheriidae
Limacidae i Cuvieronius Mixed feeder
Zonitidae i i i i Elephantidae
Pisidiidae i i i i Mammuthus Grazer


 JIMÉNEZ-HIDALGO ET AL. – LATE PLEISTOCENE VIKO VIJIN LOCAL FAUNA FROM OAXACA 25

Table 4. Mollusk taxa identified in the Rancholabrean Viko vijin Local Fauna, northwestern Oaxaca, and their habitat preferences.

Taxa Habitat
Pupillidae Members of this family usually live in hidden places, like humus, moss or between grooves of tree
bark. They are important plant and organic matter consumers (Naranjo-García, 2003).
cf. Orthalicus The Orthalicus species are tree-dwellers (Naranjo-García, 2003).
cf. Anisospira This genus inhabits calcareous soils, floodplains or lateriric soils. The hills where they live are
relatively dry and hot (Thompson, 1968).
Succineidae Some me mbers of this family inhabit under rocks, leaf litter in mixed forests or broadleaf shrubs and
trees (Forsyth, 2005); they live under humid conditions (Arroyo-Cabrales et al., 2008).
Polygyra The genus has a wide distribution in North America, from peninsular Florida to South Carolina and
west of Mexico. Inhabits in maritime to high montane habitats and from arid regions to humid
woodlands (Auffenberg & S tange, 1989).
Physa They are common freshwater gastropods, inhabiting lakes, ponds and small rivers (Taylor, 2003).
Lymnaeidae Members of this family are freshwater gastropods that feed algae and detritus (Dillon, 2000).
P lanorbidae The members of this family ar e in almost every freshwater environment, from lakes to small pond.

S
Almost all of their members are littoral animals living up to 4.5 meters depth (Baker, 1945).
Pisidium This genus inhabits the pond’s shore, associated with L ucidella lirata and planorbids (Naranjo-

A
García, 2003). Members of this genus inhabit permanent water bodies (Schultz & Cheatum, 1970).

V
CONCLUSIONS Terapa (Sonora), northwestern Mexico, Chapala (Jalisco) El
Cedazo (Aguascalientes) and Tequixquiac (Mexico), in cen-
At present knowledge of the Mexican Pleistocene is tral Mexico. Likewise, five of the eight mollusk families
incomplete and biased because the record of the central and identified are also present in Rancho La Amapola, San Luis

O
northern faunas from Mexico is greater when compared to Potosi, central Mexico.
those from the southern Mexico. Paleontological field work The presence of the llama Hemiauchenia in Oaxaca
carried out in the Mixteca Alta, Oaxaca, in southern Mexico represents the southernmost record of this genus during Late

R
led to the discovery of several fossiliferous sites where Pleistocene times. The presence of the scincomorph lizards
mollusk and vertebrate remains were recovered. The whole in this area is the first for Oaxaca. Similarly, the records of the
area was named Viko vijin Local Fauna. mollusk families Bulimulidae, Polygyridae and Urocoptidae

P
The fossil remains were recovered from six new localities
(Oax-2 to Oax-7), whose sediments are constituted by silty
clay, silty sand, fine-grained and medium-grained sand. The
sedimentary systems represent bars or natural leeves and
floodplain deposits of stream channels.
The preservation of the fossil material and the
sedimentological information suggest that the faunal
association had very limited fluvial transport and represents
an indigenous within habitat assemblage.
The mammals identified include a glyptodont
(Glyptotherium), two llama genera (Hemiauchenia and
Camelops), a deer (Odocoileus), two proboscidean genera
(Cuvieronius and Mammuthus), two Equus species, rodents
and Bison, which indicates a Rancholabrean North American
Land Mammal Age for the association. In addition, several
scincomorph lizard specimens were recovered. The mollusks
are represented by one species of freshwater bivalve and
eight gastropod taxa including five terrestrial and three of
freshwater affinities.
The mammals identified are also present at several
localities from central and northern Mexico. The Viko vijin L.
F. shares nine taxa with the Rancholabrean local faunas of
in the Mixteca Alta oaxaqueña are the first for Mexico and
allow extending their geographic range from southern USA
to southern Mexico.
The probable habitat of the study area during the Late
Pleistocene was a mosaic of woodland with grass, trees and
bush, within a cool to temperate environment and with some
episodes of dry climate and other episodes of more humid
climate.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors thank the municipal authorities of
Concepción Buenavista, Teotongo, San Antonio Acutla and
Villa Tejupam de la Unión for the permits to prospect their
lands and their kind hospitality during the fieldwork. Thanks
to the Santamaría family for their friendship and great
hospitality during the field season at Concepción Buenavista.
Thanks to J. Arroyo-Cabrales for sharing a copy of the
database “La mastofauna del Cuaternario tardío de Mexico”.
The authors acknowledge M. González-Quintero and the
biology students C. López-Pacheco, M. Campos-Camacho
and J. Rodríguez-Rodríguez for helping during fieldwork and
26 REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA, 14(1), 2011
the preparation of fossil material. This study was funded by
CONACyT- Ciencia Básica (CB-2007-01 and CB-2008-01,
projects nº 78793 and nº 101626). Thanks to the authorities
from UMAR for the space to establish the Laboratory of
Paleobiology, and to M. Montellano-Ballesteros and E.V. Oli-
veira for their valuable suggestions that helped to improve
this work.
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